GMB - What is your response to the vote on the gambling bill in the Senate last week?
Witoldo Hendrich Junior - It was not a surprise for me. If you look to my social network, you will see that I didn’t post any comments about that session. I saw lots of activity around this subject and vote, with many people traveling and with optimistic hopes. But the result was kind of obvious for me. The Senate got rid of a lot of pressure, from several interested groups. There are resort operators, investors from bingo and jogo do bicho, as well as online business owners. Now, the pressure and the responsibility to deal with this issue is shifted over to the House of Representatives. One new issue for Rodrigo (Chairman of the House of Representatives). (laughs)
What are the next steps for this industry?
We need to keep doing our homework with the Congress. We still need to address the interests of the Parliamentary Force pro Gambling with the Special Committee for Tourism, led by Congressman Paulo Azi. Azi wants to see Casinos established under new regulations for the country's tourism industry. It is crucial to show them that this partial gambling regulation may embarrass the interests of the whole country. In terms of tourism, it will be beneficial, of course. But the country will not survive only with tourism. It is obvious that resorts will generate lots of jobs, most of all in construction, hotel services and aggregated services.
On the other hand, online gambling will create a layer of employment types for a segment of society that is suffering a lot with the economic crises -- the middle class. Online businesses can bring back jobs to engineers, mathematicians, statisticians, accountants, lawyers, designers, marketers. Oh my. So many people with a college degree would get a new chance in this industry. Gambling like bingos and jogo do bicho will also grow new jobs of course, to “working-class” people, that would absolutely spread all over the country. Resorts offer positions only for a few areas. There is a huge difference between those concepts. That’s why I’ve been saying that the resort-only solution is ultimately a short-sighted vision. By the way, I said that directly to Mr. Azi while we were visiting Casinos in Estoril, Lisbon and London.
What are your expectations for the future of this bill?
I think Rodrigo will schedule this vote for May. It is just a guess. Meanwhile, I am working hard to lead two groups of congressmen abroad. One to Malta and another one to the UK. The negotiations are moving fast, but I still need official invitations from those agencies. For example, after a lot of work and several meetings, we received a formal invitation from the Special Comiteee for Cryptocurrencies and Payment Methods to hear MGA in Brasilia. Unfortunately, they cannot happen as fast we would like, as they are facing legislation changes on the Island. But they will come. A little further, but they will.
Gambling will be approved?
I have been working convinced that it will for a long time. According to my conversations in Brasilia, yes. Let’s wait for May.
Source: GMB
